Throughout the 24 hours, the 10 artists will live and work together in the gallery space, creating works of art from a 10-by-10-by-10 foot heap of scavenged materials. The unique and unpredictable results will be revealed at a reception Saturday, March 23, from 5 to 7 p.m. at CMCA, 162 Russell Ave. The reception is free and open to the public. Thereafter, the exhibit will be open for viewing Fridays and Saturdays from 1 to 5 p.m. through April 6; or by appointment.

The first “Resisting Entropy” took place in 2010 at Asymmetrick Arts in Rockland, conceived by artists Clark and Cowan. They and the other participating artists refined the idea over the course of two months. Allen, one of the eight original artists, called the experience an interesting dichotomy between process and product. While most of the artists produced three or four works during the 24 hours, Allen said the project is part performance and that the final artwork is really a “documentation of the event and process itself.”

Because the artists have no result in mind and are working with limited time and often-unfamiliar materials and methods, they are compelled to expand their creative vocabularies. Allen said that most were pleasantly surprised by both the experience and the outcome.

“Resisting Entropy 2010” engendered good support from the community, and Cowan hopes the event will expand throughout the state (and beyond), with the current 10 artists dividing into two groups that would each join with five new artists to repeat the process. The groups would continue to expand in number giving artists from other areas the opportunity to participate in the process. Because local tradespeople and business owners donate materials for “the heap,” Cowan said he believes the resulting artwork will differ from area to area, depending on the materials contributed.

CMCA’s major media sponsor is Maine Home + Design magazine. CMCA, a nonprofit organization advancing contemporary art in Maine through exhibitions and educational programs, will open its 61st season May 25. For more information, visit cmcanow.org.